Configuring the DHCP server

To connect targets to the OS Deployment server, you might need to configure the DHCP server based on the characteristics of your network.

The DHCP server is used by the PXE bootrom to get its IP address and other basic networking information (including subnet mask, and default gateway). Using BigFix Bare Metal Server can require changes to your DHCP configuration. These changes can typically be performed automatically by the BigFix Bare Metal Server installer. However, in some cases, you might want to perform the changes manually, or to verify them.
Important: If your DHCP Server is configured to use option 210 pxelinux.pathprefix(), this option causes the PXE boot to fail on bare metal targets. This option must not be configured for bare metal deployments.

You can configure your DHCP server for one of the three following situations:

  • The DHCP server and the BigFix Bare Metal Server are not running on the same host
  • The DHCP server and the BigFix Bare Metal Server are running on the same host
  • You already have a PXE 2.0 infrastructure with PXE Boot Server discovery installed and you want to add BigFix Bare Metal Server to the list of servers to discover.
Note:
  • If you have previously configured your DHCP server for another PXE bootstrap, do not reuse your existing DHCP configuration. Remove DHCP options 43 and 60 for the hosts on which you want to run BigFix Bare Metal Server and follow the instructions given in this section (if you are running on the BigFix Bare Metal Server same host as the DHCP server, you need to set option 60 again).
  • There are also cases where you must set both DHCP options 43 and 60, including when you have two different OS Deployment Servers in your environment.

DHCP server and OS deployment server on different targets, without information on PXE server location

Actions to perform:

  • If DHCP options 43 and 60 are set, remove them.
  • If the DHCP server is not running on the same computer as the OS deployment server, the DHCP configuration does not change. The OS deployment server detects DHCP packets sent over the network by PXE bootroms and offers PXE parameters without disturbing standard DHCP negotiation process. This behavior is called DHCPProxy.
    Note: This configuration is not allowed if more than one OS deployment server is defined in the same environment. In the OS deployment server WebUI ensure that the DHCP proxy functionality is disabled: Server parameters > Server configuration > Disable the DHCP proxy functionality = NO (default value).

DHCP server and OS deployment server on different targets, with information on PXE server location

Actions to perform:

  • Set option 60 (Class identifier) to "PXEClient" to inform the target that the location of the PXE server is known.
  • Set option 43 to indicate that the PXE server does not reside on the same computer as the DHCP server and to precise the location of the PXE server.
    Note: This configuration is mandatory if more than one OS deployment server is defined in the same environment.
Note: Some UEFI targets are not able to correctly process option 43. For those targets it is necessary to set option 66 and 67.
For more details about these options, see:

DHCP server and OS deployment server on the same target

Set your DHCP server to send DHCP option 60 (Class identifier) to the target. When option 60 is set to PXEClient the DHCP server knows where the PXE server is. If option 43 is not set, the PXE server has the same IP address as the DHCP server.

For detailed information about setting option 60, see Setting DHCP Option 60.